Electricity conductor unit



Feb. 24, 1942. MORTEN 2,274,087

ELECTRICITY CONDUCTOR UNIT Filed Oct. 28, 1939 Patented Feb. 24, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ELECTRICITY CONDUCTOR UNIT Louis G. Morten, Teaneck, N. 1., assignor to John I B. Pierce Foundation. New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application October 28, 1939, Serial No. 301,737

3Claims. (Cl. 174-88) The present invention relates to improved elecable extent, a desired part of the body material tricity conductor units, and particularly to conmay be removed therefrom to afford the required ductor units made in standardized lengths and extension of conductors, whereupon the conducadapted for seriatlm mechanical and electrical tive sleeves may be replaced over the projectinterconnection by connection means embodying ing conductors and lectrically connected theremale and female conductor elements. to. The foreshortened conductor unit is then in It is an object of the present invention to proform for interconnection with an adjacent unit vide electrical conductor units of the class deto complete the desired circuit.

scribed, wherein the length of any such unit may The present application is a continuation in be foreshortened at the place of installation, to part of my presently copending application Seconform to conditions unique to such installaal N 7 4, 89 ent d ect c y conductor tion. units," filed December 27, 1933, now I). S. Patent In the present invention, the improved eleco. 2, dat d O e 1940- tricity conductor unit desirably comprises a body In h a pany drawing I portion of electrical insulation material, within Fig. 1 is a plan sectional representation of an which body are provided a desired plurality of electricity conducto unit foreshcrtened. at the electrical conductors, said conductors terminate e d po n, o a desired length;

ing at one end of the unit in suitable electrically 2 s a representation 0 t unit of L conductive socket means, preferably countersunk the b dy Portion of Which s bee ut t a ord within the body of the unit, and terminating, at a p j n of h ndu or means from the the opposite end, in enlarged diameter male conface the e and further treated to remove y nection means projecting from the end wall of er from about t said conductors; the body portion, Fig. 3 is a plan sectional representation of the At th male connection end portion ,1 the male end portion of the electricity conductor conductor units, the electrical conductors thereunit;

of project beyond the face of the unit, and over 4 s a representation of P O i terconsuch projecting ends, electrically conductive nected conductor units;

sleeves are placed, said sleeves extending over 5 is a sectional p tat o of a second the conductors throughout the full length of exfo of conductor unit, adjacent co ductor units tension thereof, and penetrating into the body of so being mechanically and electrically nte conthe unit to any desired extent. Such electrically ected;

conductive sleeves are preferably mechanically Fig, 6 is a perspective of the male end P on and electrically secured to the electrical con- 0f the conductor unit shown in ductors at the outer terminal ends thereof, and Fig. 7 is a pe spective of the male end P o desirably, such connection is made by soldering 0f the unit of showing pa on of the or like means affording the removal of the sleeves inae to afford removal of material from the from the conductors if circumstances so require. y P o s e eof; and

Desirably, the body portion of my improved Fig. 8 is a vertical section taken through a electrical conductor units is of laminated conconductor of the u t o 3- struction, the plies thereof being separable; most 40 Referring to t e drawing, Figures 6 and 7 show preferably, the electrical conductors are disposed n e ectrical conductor unit III of indeterminate in grooves formed within a lamination at the e gth. The body of said conductor unit is desurface thereof, whereby upon separation of cerirably laminated, comp a base Portion rain laminations, a desired portion of the said and a cap or cover portionlb, bo P e e body material may be cut away to afford the 45 being of electrical insulation material. Base suitable projection of the electrical conductors portion y e a plurality of tudifrom the face of the body upon the re-secureally disp s d r v s therein; h entral t of t 1amin9,e grooves II, I I, may accommodate electrical con- When it is desired to shorten a conductor unit, ductors whereas the ut s oves the sleeves may be removed from the male ends a, a, c p fl with suitable beading thereof, as by melting the solder connection and formed on the under side of the cap portion lib. drawing the sleeve outwardly of 'the body of the Upon assembly of the cap and base portion, elecunit. The unit may then be cut, atsuch end trical conductors l2, I! are snugly confined portion, to the desired length. Upon separation within the conductor unit; the tongue and of the laminae of the body portion over a suitgroove interconnection of base lfla and cap llb and base portions, maintains the electrical conductors against displacement, and precludes access to theconductors.

Desirably, base portion [a is of relatively soft rubber or other suitably flexible insulation material; cover portion Mb may be of a stiffer material such as a molded plastic to afiord rigidity to the structure and to impart desired aesthetic or decorativevalues thereto.

It is preferable to position the conductors l2 within the respective grooves I i without cementing or otherwise securing the same; said grooves i I, therefore, over at least a portion of the length of the unit are of suitable size to engage the conductors snugly. Pursuant to such construction, and as shown in Fig. 7, the conductors l2 may be lifted out of the grooves I i upon separation of the cap and base portions of a unit. The respective cap and base portions of the conductor unit may be adhesively bonded together to render the cap and base portions separable when desired, as by the insertion of a suitable edge tool along the edge of the juncture of the respective portions.

Figures 1 and 3 show, respectively, the female and male end portions of standardized conductor units. The female socket portions preferably include suitable sockets l5, Ii, of electrical conductive material, soldered or otherwise electrically connected to the conductors l2. As shown, it is preferable to have the sockets II countersunk within the body of the conductor unit lfl. At the male end of a conductor unit, the conductors II project from the end surface of the body of the unit, and such projecting conductors may be fitted with tubular electrically conductive elements it having an outside diameter arranged for a snug mechanical engagement with the inner wall of a socket i5 of an adjacent unit. Placed over each of said tubular conductive elements is a sleeve ll of electrical insulation material. Said sleeve 18 projects beyond the end surface of the conductor unit body to an amount equal to the depth of countersink of the sockets ll so that, as shown in Fig. 4, the conductors of a conductor unit may be protected against accidental short circuit at the point of connection of adjacent units.

As shown in Fig. 3, the sleeves I may be secured to their associated conductors I! by solder I! or the like, at the outer end only. The solder is preferably of a suitable melting point, subject to electrical code requirements.

It is a feature of the present'invention that D the standardized lengths of electrical conductor units may readily be cut to any required length, so that after the interconnection of a series of standardized length conductor units, a unit may be shortened to conform to the overall length requirement of the particular installation.

In shortening such conductor unit, it.is desirable first to remove the tubular conductors II from the conductors I 2, as by melting the solder at the tips thereof, and drawing the conductor l8 and the insulating sleeves ll outwardly from the body of the conductor. A suitable amount of the male end portion of the conductor unit body may be cut therefrom, the out also severing the conductors II, as typified by the showings of Figs. 1 and 6. To provide for the extension of conductors II from the end face of the shortened unit, the cap and base portions may be separated over a desired length and a suitable portion of such cap and base removed, as indicated by the aaveoar broken lines of Fig. 7. The cap and base portion may be re-cemented or otherwise restored to original status.

By a suitable reaming or boring tool 20, represented diagrammatically in Figure 2, said tool 20 having a central bore 2| of such diameter that the tool 2! will fit snugly over the conductors II, the electrical insulation material of the cap and base portions surrounding the conductors I! may be removed therefrom, leaving the countersunk portions 22, shown in Fig. 2. Such countersunk portions have an outside diameter suitable to accommodate the insulating sleeves ll.

After the positioning of the insulating sleeves II, the sleeves I6 may be passed over the projecting end portions of the conductors I2, and soldered or otherwise secured thereto to restore the mechanical and electrical connection therebetween.

The foreshortened unit is then adaptable for interconnection with the socketed portion of a preceding unit, as shown in Fig. 4.

A second embodiment of the improved conductorunit is shown in Figure 5. In such embodiment, it will be noted that the grooves H, I I, within which the conductors I! are disposed, are, throughout the greater proportion of the length of a conductor unit, of adequate size to receive the sleeves IS without additional reaming treatment of such grooves. It is desirable to firmly secure a portion of the conductors l2 near the end socket portion of the conductor unit, and for that reason it is shown that the enlarged groove portions of the conductor units do not extend throughout the full length thereof. It is also desirable that the socket portions of each conductor unit be firmly affixed to the respective conductor body and cap portions, to avoidaccidental displacement and disarrangement of the sockets.

In the embodiment of Figure 5, therefore, the shortening of a unit pursuant to. the foregoing description is simplified by the elimination of the reaming step.

Figure 5 also shows a modified form of insulating sleeve, such modified form contemplating a collar portion ll of such sleeve, to limit the depth of insertion of the sleeve into the enlarged grooves II, and thereby to insure that the Joint between contiguous conductor units is adequately protected against short circuits.

As will be understood, the enlarged diameters of the sleeves Ii and the sockets II, in comparisonwith the diameter of the therewith associated conductors l2, afford adequate area of surface contact of the sleeves II with the sockets I l of an interconnected unit, thus insuring substantially unimpeded electric flow through such interconnected units.

Whereas I have described my invention by reference to specific forms thereof, it will be understood that many changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

portion removably secured to said base portion and forming a closure :for such grooves, electricity conductor positioned within said grooves in mutually insulated spaced relationship and projecting from said body at an end thereof.

tubular electricity conductive means encompassing said projecting conductors and extending into said body portion in removable association therewith, said tubular conductive means being removably secured to said conductors by means disposed at the projecting portions thereof, and tubular electricity conductive socket )nea'ns secured to said conductor means and to said body at the end opposite from said projecting conductor means, said socket means having an inside diameter equal to the external diameter of said tubular electrically conductive means and a depth greater than the total length of projection.

of said tubular electricity conductive means from the end faces of said body.

2. An electricity conductor unit for seriatim electrical and mechanical connection with like conductor units, comprising a body having a base portion of flexible electrical insulation material formed with grooves at an upper face extending longitudinally of said base portion and coextensive therewith, a relatively rigid cap portion removably secured to said base portion and serving to close said longitudinal grooves, electricity conductor means arranged within said grooves in mutually insulated spaced relationship and projecting from said body at an end face thereof, tubular electricity conductive means encompassing said projecting conductors and extending into said body portion in removable association therewith, said tubular conductive means being removably secured to said conductors by soldering or like means disposed at the projecting terminal ends thereof, and tubular electrically conductive socket means secured to said conductor means at the opposite end thereof and disposed within said body portion, said socket means having an inside diameter substantially equal to the outside diameter of the exposed portion ofsaid tubular conductive means and a depth greater than the length of such exposed portion, whereby the tubular conductive means of one unit may be inserted into the socket means of a contiguous conductor unit to afford electrical connection of the conductor means of said interconnected units.

3. An electricity conductor unit for seriatim electrical and mechanical interconnection with like conductor units comprising a body'having a base portion of flexible insulation material provided with longitudinally extending grooves, electrical conductor mean-s removably contained within said grooves, and a relatively rigid cap portion removably secured to said base portion and overlying said electrical conductor means to maintain the same within said grooves, said conductor means projecting from an end of said body portion, electrically conductive sleeve means encompassing said projecting electrical conductor means and extending into said body portion in removable association therewith, said sleeve means being removably secured to said conductor means at the projecting ends thereof, said conductor means at their opposite ends being electrically connected to electrically conductive socket means disposed wholly within the body of said unit; the grooves of said base portion having a diameter at least equal to the diameter of said sleeve means except in a zone adjacent the connection of the conductor means with said socket means, in which zone the said grooves approximate the external diameter of the conductor means to snugly confine such conductor means.

I? LOUIS G. Moa'mn. 

